Life Goes On
by Goddess Romi Sparkles
Summary: Ginny has kept mostly to herself after the final battle. Her friends are worried for her but want to give her space. While reflecting on her school years down at the lake Luna decides to join her.


This was written for the Qudditch European Cup (HPFC) Round two. For this round we were given a quote which you see below and a setting which is also stated below. I do not own any of the Harry Potter character, if I did I would be filthy rich.

Pairing: Ginny/Luna

Rating: T for Teen.

Setting: Hogwarts: The black lake.

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**Life Goes On**

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_"In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on." - Robert Frost_

* * *

When Ginny had first seen the Black Lake as a first year it had been an amazing, breath-taking event. She had nearly overturned the boat in her haste to see the lake from different angles. Her small hands had dipped into the dark waters, letting them skim the surface all the way to the castle.

"It's so cool, isn't it?" Trinity Lynn asked her, eyes wide with amazement.

Ginny's head bobbled in a quick, excited nod. "Yes, it's just…gorgeous." The eleven year old breathed. She yelped when something brushed her fingers from within the water and was quick to pull them back out.

A few of the other first years in the boats next to their snickered but didn't outright laugh. Some of them had had a hand in the water as well. Ginny blushed, ducking her head in embarrassment – what a first impression she was making.

-o0o-

The next time she visited the lake it was toward the end of her third year. She had slipped off her socks and shoes and dipped her feet into the chilled waters. It reached up to her calves and drew a small shiver from her slight frame. Giggling could be heard just behind her and she rolled her eyes.

"What are you people giggling about now?" Ginny called out to her friends.

Trinity giggled again, "Just enjoying the view, Ginny-darling." she replied distractedly, looking at the group of boys fooling around further down from them. One of them had initiated some sort of water fight and as if one unit they all pulled off their school robes and shirts.

"Oh, Kevin Entwhistle is so hot." Sue Li said aloud in a dreamy sort of voice. She was blushing deeply immediately after it sunk in that she had spoken out loud.

"I agree with you," Isobel MacDougal decided, chewing her lip and fanning herself. "But I think Michael Corner can give him a run for his money."

Ginny's eyes rolled heavenward in a silent plea for Godric and Merlin to give her strength.

-o0o-

It was a spring evening days before the battle that Ginny found herself again at the lake. It was proving to be a constant in her years at Hogwarts. The lake was symbolic to her, of peace and tranquility as well as a place to confess all her worries and troubles.

This particular evening she was accompanied by her good friend, Luna Lovegood. They were relaxing, Ginny's head lying in Luna's lap and the latter girl's toes just dipped into the dark waters of the lake.

Luna's fingers carded through her friend's hair, lulling her into a drowsy state.

"You have magic fingers…" Ginny slurred, turning her head away from the water to seek the warmth that the blonde radiated. This caused Luna to giggle leaning down to whisper in the red-head's ear.

"Check it out; I knew those two were lesbians." One Lisa Turpin said to Anthony Goldstein in a particularly loud and nasally voice that startled both girls. "Look at them, snogging out here in the open like this. They're setting a bad example for the firsties, they are."

Ginny blinked, were they seriously being called lesbians? They hadn't even done anything to be accused of such. Then she began to really think on it, _well I supposed from their position when Luna leaned over it could look like a kiss. Still, they have no right trying to pick on us!_

Terry Boot spoke up then just after clearing his throat, "Well, it's cool with me. I mean girl on girl action looks hot, right Nanette?" he bumped his shoulder with the last Ravenclaw girl in the small group.

Nanette only shrugged, her head lowered to her hands where she was shuffling around her newest set of chocolate frog cards.

"Why don't you get lost, Lisa!" Ginny hissed, pulling out her wand in a clear unspoken threat.

Lisa stepped forward, drawing out her own wand. "Oh yeah? And who is going to make me, Weasley?"

Anthony shifted a bit, looking back to the castle, "I don't think you guys should start anything. Professor Snape just came out here to call us in for dinner…"

Lisa sneered at Ginny, her eyes flickering back to Anthony unsurely before she lowered her wand. "Hmph, let's go guys. I don't want to be around Looney and Ms. Freckle too long, they might try to come onto me." With that said she flipped her stringy mousy brown hair over her shoulder and strutted off with her nose in the air. The three in her group hesitated before following after her slowly, offering apologizing looks.

Luna waved after them, "Goodbye, Anthony, Nanette, and Terry!" she called out. Meanwhile Ginny growled and laid her head back onto her friend's lap, planning to write to Fred and George about a prank to two.

-o0o-

It was weeks after the big battle at Hogwarts then during the clean-up and repairs that Ginny found herself wandering to the lake. She'd meandered off on her own after her mother – the slave driver – allowed her a break from cleaning. Her family was one of the many who wanted to help clean up the school they all loved dearly. It was a bitter pill to swallow, cleaning up blood that had long since dried and seeing the scorch marks of spells and curses that felled many of her friends.

Ginny knew her family was worried about her and George the most, a fact that the teen was quite aggravated about. She felt that their priorities were misplaced, instead of focusing on her they should be focusing on George and Bill. Everyone always focused on her because she was the baby of the family, a girl, and it also didn't help that her and Harry's private break up was now very public news. The young witch sighed heavily,_ it's not like it is anyone's damned business, Harry and I agreed to take a break for a while. _It isn't a big bloody deal.

"You know, I've heard frowning isn't good for your face." A wistful voice said from behind her that caused Ginny's head to whip around fast enough to give herself whiplash. It was Luna, smiling at her softly with her arms crossed behind her back. She was wearing a pale yellow sundress that was smudged with dirt in places and unsurprisingly her feet were left bare.

"Where are your shoes? You didn't lose them did you?" Ginny found herself asking accusingly instead of greeting her friend appropriately.

The blonde only giggled, "Oh no, I have them I just took them off so I could feel the grass between my toes." Luna told her while rocking forward on the balls of her feet and pulling her arms in front of her to reveal her all white sneakers. She skipped forward and plopped down next to Ginny, humming all the while. Luna always was in cheerful spirits except for when the battle was going on.

'_Please – please be safe, my friend.' _The words that the blonde hand spoken to her before kissing her echoed in Ginny's mind. She found herself looking at Luna, watching as the former the Ravenclaw slipped her feet into the water of the lake, lightly kicking them around with an easy going smile on her face.

"Luna…do you like me?" Ginny asked unsurely, chewing on her bottom lip while awaiting the other girl's response.

The girl in question turned in Ginny's direction, "Of course I like you, Ginny. You are my best friend after all." Luna said in a tone that said her question had an obvious answer to it and Ginny only looked shocked.

She swallowed her shock before speaking, "Y-your best friend? Me?"

The blonde gave a small exasperated sigh then laughed softly, leaning into Ginny's side. "Of course you are, who else?"

"I – I didn't mean it in that sense though…" Ginny muttered with a sigh, looking out at the lake. The blonde's head settled on her shoulder and they stayed like that for a few comfortable minutes.

Luna reached over and patted Ginny's thigh as if to comfort her. "I know, Ginny. Do you want me to like you?" she asked in turn, scratching her nose and turning the attention of her blue-grey eyes on her red-headed friend.

Ginny was at a loss of words for a moment, floundering for breath and the wits to answer the seemingly innocent question. Instead the question seemed to pierce her very being and inspire her own inquiries. Did she want Luna to like her back? Why did she even care or ask the question? What about Harry? That last thought caused Ginny to wince.

She often thought that maybe she shouldn't have ended things with Harry. Then she wouldn't have gained the subsequent spotlight and all that came with it. Usually she would confide in the twins about these things, she was their favorite but with Fred's death and George's following depression… things were a bit complicated. Ginny didn't want to bother or weigh down George with her problems.

"You're spacing out on me, Ginny."

Ginny's brain paused; but Luna was clever, and not much escaped her notice she just chose whether or not to speak on her observations. There was no point in denying her thoughts running a mile a minute.

"I'm sorry, Luna. I'm just trying to… get my thoughts together."

Luna nodded, laying her head back on the red-head's shoulder. Her hand fluttering around Ginny's, the same black beetle ring on her thumb and shining silver open heart ring on her index finger. "Am I distracting you, Ginny? I could go if I am…" she offered but hadn't moved to do just that.

"No… I like having you here, like I can breathe easier and my thoughts aren't so loud or scattered. I feel almost… whole." Ginny confessed brokenly, tipping her head down and her bangs which she had grown out shadowed her face – hiding her light brown eyes.

Luna shifted beside her, pulling her feet out of the water and carefully sliding back on the grass. Then she rolled over onto her knees and placed a hand under Ginny's chin and tipped her head up. Blue eyes met brown and the blonde smiled softly, her free hand caressing Ginny's cheek.

"What is troubling you, Ginny? I cannot hope to help if I do not know what is going on within that mind of yours."

The red-head shifted then, her eyes looking away from Luna's and welling up with tears. Abhorrence rolled through her body in waves at her own weakness. "I always seem to be crying when in your presence these days, you must think I'm such a weak and emotional person." she whispered bitterly.

Luna frowned, "When did you become so self-loathing?"

Ginny didn't reply, which prompted Luna to crawl closer and grasp the other girl's chin once more and turned it back so she could stare into those soulful brown eyes she knew so well. "Listen to me, Ginevra," The blonde said firmly, "You will not drown yourself in whatever grief you feel, you are not the only one affected by the war."

The red-head tried to turn her face away but Luna held strong, by now the Ravenclaw had somehow shifted onto her lap.

"You need to do some soul searching and calm your mind," Luna plowed on, her fingers now caressing the side of her face. "Are not weak or alone in this, there are people who care about you to catch you when you stumble or even fall."

"She's right you know."

Both girls' heads turned, having been startled out of their private moment. There stood a worn-out Ron and Hermione; a few feet back were Neville and Harry chatting away about something. Each had a bottle of water in their hands and looked to be relaxing.

"I'll have to agree with Ron on this one." Hermione added in her two cents, lacing her hand with Ron's. The couple moved forward and Ginny's face burned at her and Luna's position.

Ron had a blush on his face as well but had obviously chosen to overlook the position his little sister and friend had taken up. "What I mean is that I know – " he paused when Hermione squeezed his hand. "We know that you are hurting; we all had to see and experience things that shoved us into adulthood. Our days of just being children are over, this is a fact but we cannot sit and whine about it." he stated firmly, a grim look on his face and resolve burning in his blue eyes.

Hermione sniffled, wiping a tear from her eye. "Oh Ron, I couldn't have said it better than that. You have really grown up, I'm just so proud of you." She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her lips to his cheek.

"Yes, that was beautiful. Thank you for your insightful words, Ronald." Luna said with a grin, her usually unfocused dreamy eyes clear and focused on him. During his mini-speech she had moved to sit beside Ginny once more. Said ginger haired teen sat in a contemplative silence with her legs pulled up to her chest.

"_In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on_." Ginny said softly to herself. "I read that in a book somewhere, it's a muggle quote. I think that it applies to a situation like this, do you guys think so?"

"Yes, I believe it does and it is very true. We cannot dwell on the things of the past but keep moving forward and hope for the best." said Hermione with a warm smile, she leaned forward and pulled Ginny into a one armed hug.

Ron grunted his agreement with his girlfriend, having already said his peace and reverting back into the silent supporting friend role he was known for.

"You're right, thanks Hermione." Ginny hugged her back tightly, feeling the weight that had been on her shoulders lighten a bit. "I want to thank all of you for being here for me even if I am being a bit of a whiny brat." she admitted sheepishly while blushing a little.

Luna laid back in the grass then tugged the back of Ginny's shirt sharply. She yelped, falling back beside her best friend. "If you wanted me to lie down with you all you had to do was ask." Ginny deadpanned.

The blonde only gave her a cheeky smile and scooted closer to the younger girl. "But what I did was more fun and I got the same results."

Ginny rolled her eyes heavenward, "You are incorrigible."

The girl in question only shrugged in acceptance, laying her head on her friend shoulder and gazing up at the afternoon sky. The sun peeked out from behind the clouds and warmed her chilled skin. It felt good to relax in the sun with friends, Ginny sighed contently. Even though her day didn't start off that well at least it ended perfectly. She was relaxing in the sun surrounded by friends and for a few moments she didn't have a care in the world. Life goes on.


End file.
